There have been some pretty questionable contract signings throughout the NFL in recent years. In fact, just saying that will conjure up images of Deshaun Watson and Daniel Jones in the minds of certain fans.
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In the last two years, however, you’d be hard-pressed to find a messier situation than the one that the Atlanta Falcons managed to create in 2024. Kirk Cousins’ four-year, $180-million deal stands as both a testament to his agent and as an indictment on the Falcons’ front office, and according to Cam Newton, it only continues to look worse with each passing day.
“I love nothing more than a player getting his coin,” Newton prefaced during the latest episode of his 4th & 1 podcast. “But when you get the coin, you gotta perform. Sometimes, these folks done forgot to perform and say ‘I’m straight, I’m good.'”
In the eyes of the former Carolina Panther, the dollar amount tied to Atlanta’s deal with Cousins, which was also signed just weeks prior to their selection of Michael Penix Jr. with the eighth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, is certainly enough to have it be considered one of, if not the, worst deals in NFL history. “At the time, some people said ‘Oh Cam, you’re just mad because that ain’t you.'”
“Of course I’m mad,” he admitted. “For $180 million? Who doesn’t want that? They didn’t even have to spend half of that. Man, you could have gotten a refurbished Cam Newton, a refurbished Michael Jones, a refurbished Julio Jones, for half that price.”
Unfortunately, for both the Falcons and Newton, what’s done is done, and all that Atlanta can do now is try its best to navigate the heaps of chaos that their now-former general manager, Terry Fontenot, left behind. According to Newton, however, the franchise does seem to have gotten a jump start on cleaning up the mess with their hiring of Matt Ryan.
“I commend them for saying ‘Hey, let’s go get a former player in Matt Ryan. Because, now, if you’ve got a former player, you know certain things. You become an expert in this space because of the time spent in this specific trade.”
For better or worse, the Falcons are officially two years through their four-year nightmare. And while they have yet to receive any type of return on their investment in Cousins, who has started in just 16 games throughout the past two seasons, they are now at least that much closer to finding a sense of both competence and cap space.
